January 2013: The UN Division for Sustainable Development (DSD) has launched a section of its Sustainable Development Knowledge Platform on the Open Working Group (OWG) on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The page on the OWG – the establishment of which was recently agreed in the UN General Assembly (UNGA) – is part of a broader section on the SDGs and related resources.

The webpage includes information on: the UN System Technical Support Team (TST); the text from the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, or Rio+20) Outcome Document, “The Future We Want,” on the SDGs; OWG members; and OWG Meetings.

The UN System TST section references the Rio+20 text on the establishment of an inter-agency TST, which works under the umbrella of the UN System Task Team (UNTT). DSD, part of the UN Department for Economic and Social Development (DESA), and the UN Development Programme (UNDP) serve as the TST co-chairs, and 40 additional UN entities participate in the TST.

The Rio+20 text section references the Outcome Document text on the SDGs, paragraphs 245-251. The text states that the SDGs should, inter alia: incorporate “all three dimensions of sustainable development and their interlinkages;” “be coherent with and integrated into the UN development agenda beyond 2015;” serve as a driver for mainstreaming sustainable development; and be “action-oriented, concise…limited in number, aspirational…and universally applicable…while taking into account different national realities…levels of development” and national priorities.

On the OWG, the text states the group will, inter alia: decide on its modalities of work while ensuring full stakeholder involvement; and will prepare a report for the 68th Session of the UNGA on a proposal for SDGs.

The Rio+20 Outcome Document states OWG membership should be comprised of 30 representatives with the aim of achieving “fair, equitable and balanced geographic representation.” The OWG Membership, as agreed in the UNGA on 22 January 2013, uses a constituency-based system of representation in which several countries share OWG seats. Only six seats are held by single countries, while the other seats are shared by two, three or four countries.

The African Group seats are: Algeria/Egypt/Morocco/Tunisia; Ghana; Benin; Kenya; Tanzania; Congo; and Zambia/Zimbabwe.

The Asian Group seats are: Nauru/Palau/Papua New Guinea (PNG); Bhutan/Thailand/Viet Nam; India/Pakistan/Sri Lanka; China/Indonesia/Kazakhstan; Cyprus/Singapore/United Arab Emirates (UAE); Bangladesh/Republic of Korea/Saudi Arabia; and Iran/Japan/Nepal.

The Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC) seats are: Colombia/Guatemala; Bahamas/Barbados; Guyana/Haiti/Trinidad and Tobago; Mexico/Peru; Brazil/Nicaragua; and Argentina/Bolivia/Ecuador.

The Western Europe and Others Group (WEOG) seats are: Australia/Netherlands/United Kingdom; Canada/Israel/US; Denmark/Ireland/Norway; France/Germany/Switzerland; and Italy/Spain/Turkey.

The Eastern European Group seats are: Hungary; Belarus/Serbia; Bulgaria/Croatia; Montenegro/Slovenia; and Poland/Romania.

The OWG webpage also includes links to relevant documents, including: the UNGA draft decision on the OWG (A/67/L.48/Rev.1); UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s initial input to the OWG; the UNGA press release on the establishment of the OWG; and the Rio+20 Outcome Document. [UN Sustainable Development Knowledge Platform OWG Webpage] [UNGA Decision on OWG] [Publication: Secretary-General’s Initial Input to the Open Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals] [DPI Press Release] [Publication: The Future We Want] [IISD RS Story on OWG Establishment, SDG Membership]